University Emergency Procedures

The preparedness of this campus in case of an emergency incident is a high priority issue. Any change in the national threat level will be closely monitored, as will any specific threats to the safety of the Coppin State community. Information concerning the safety and security of this campus will be disseminated to the community through all available avenues of campus communication (emails, text message system, etc.) and if applicable, any recommended campus actions will be detailed.

Coppin State University Police Department automatically implements response protocols based upon the current threat level at the national and local level to mitigate risk at this institution. These response protocols activate different levels of operational activities undertaken by the Coppin Police Department to provide enhanced services to the community and to engage the community in a collaborative state of vigilance against threatening activities. The Coppin Police Department would like to make you aware of the impact that a heightened state of alert has to the campus community by providing general information about the institutional response the campus can expect and what is expected of community members during these uncertain times.

Coppin Police Department continually reviews and revises procedures that are needed to implement the state of preparedness policy during critical incidents that occur on campus. The new policy/procedure will include:

• Establishing an emergency response based on federally designed Incident Command System protocols;
• Implementing a Disaster Response Protocol model based upon an Incident Response Team comprised of high level campus administrators, an Emergency Operations Center comprised of major resource holders, and an Incident Command System team comprised of CSUPD officers trained to coordinate on-scene activities at major incidents;
• Implementing an Early Warning System Emergency Program to provide instant notification of the campus community to imminent dangerous conditions. Upon activation of the Early Warning System Emergency Program, campus community members should:
  • Seek shelter within the closest building;
  • Seek information about the emergency from the following resources;
    • + www.coppin.edu
    • + (410) 951-3000 - Main campus line
    • + (410) 951-3900 - Department of public safety

For the duration of any heightened threat condition, the Coppin State Police Dept will engage in the following activities on a daily basis to augment normal safety and security activities:

• Maintaining an institutional liaison with local, state, and federal agencies to facilitate information sharing with the campus community; and,
• Providing increased uniformed police officer visibility at designated areas and during campus special events;

What you can do as a community member

We are calling upon you as a member of the community to be vigilant in immediately reporting suspicious activity that you observe on campus. Your knowledge of personal space and areas you frequent on campus enable you to best judge persons or conditions that are out of place or suspicious. When you observe anything that seems out of the ordinary, we encourage you to immediately call the Coppin State Police Dept at x3900 from a campus phone or 410-951-3900 from off campus or cell phones. Your assistance in alerting us to suspicious conditions, events, or persons is a critical component of maintaining safe and secure campus and the CSUPD is dependant on a collaborative campus community to successfully maintain safety at this institution.

Campus Emergency Notification System

Coppin State University's state-of-the-art notification system sends messages instantly and simultaneously to all registered text message capable mobile phones, Blackberrys, wireless PDAs, pagers, Smart or Satellite phones, and e-mail addresses. The service will also post these messages on the university's Web site. Additionally, the messages will "pop up" on the computer screen for anyone using Google, Yahoo, or AOL as their home page. Students, faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to register - it only takes a minute. This will be the surest way for you to receive notifications critical to your safety and well being, as well as other campus information you may want to opt-in to receive.

In case of an emergency situation on campus, we strongly encourage you to keep your own supply of food and water to last for this a day or two. You should also consider keeping items such as a flashlight, spare batteries, a portable radio, medicine, and other necessary personal supplies in your office area and/or dormitory room. In the event of a campus emergency, we will utilize all available state and federal disaster relief agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) to provide food and water should an emergency arise.

Providing information about all disaster scenarios is impossible given the variety of potential threats that might occur. I encourage you to learn more about preparing for specific emergencies by visiting the websites listed below:

• MEMA overview of the MD Threat Alert System and guidance for citizens, businesses, and schools
• Maryland Emergency Management Agency
• American Red Cross Homeland Security Advisory System
• FEMA site dealing with national security emergencies and terrorism

Hopefully this correspondence helps get everyone prepared and alleviate ready in case of a national disaster some of your fears in this uncertain time while providing information that you find useful regarding the institutions commitment to providing the safest community possible. Hopefully your role in our collective efforts to maintain the safety of the campus has been clarified.

If questions arise, you are encouraged to call the Department of Public Safety at (410) 951-3900.